Dance instructor, publisher.
Born at Glasgow, Scotland on 27 May 1951 to James Borland Douglas (1925-2008) and Irene May Douglas (1927-2012), she moved to Canada with her parents and three brothers at the age of five, first to Brockville, Ontario, and then to Quebec and Winnipeg, and back to Quebec by herself at the age of 18. In Montreal, she found work as a fitness instructor, but her love of dance took her to a job at the Arthur Murray School of Dance. It is here where she met her husband, ballroom dance instructor, William Daum. Together, they founded the LaSalle School of Dance, and at the age of 21 she wrote a book, Guide to Beginner Social Dancing.
In 1981, she and her husband and three young children moved to Winnipeg, where her parents lived. In the community of Charleswood, she volunteered at the Varsity View Community Centre and worked with the community newsletter in advertising sales. In 1983, she created the Best Recipes in Charleswood cookbook for the Crabapple Festival. These experiences led her into a career in the community newspaper business, first developing a publication called the Charleswood Consumer Guide, followed by The Suburban in the St. James area of Winnipeg. After she and her husband divorced, she worked for a short period of time at the Metro One newspaper.
In 1988, she placed a lunch order at her favorite café one day, and while waiting for her food, found herself reading the nutritional information on a sugar packet. The idea came to her that restaurants should give patrons something quick to read while they wait. At the same time, local businesses were struggling to find affordable options to advertise and market their goods and services. With her background in advertising, her passion to help her community, and after conducting many months of research, she launched a publication called Coffee News. The first edition was released on 22 October 1988 in the St. Vital neighbourhood. As its success grew, she was inspired to franchise her business model providing opportunities for others to become part of the publication concept. At the time of her death, Coffee News had become the world’s largest franchised publication, reaching its 1000th franchise. After her death, the business was taken over by Bill Buckley of Bangor, Maine, who had been the first franchisee of Coffee News, while her daughter Candice Daum took the leadership of Coffee News Canada.
She died at Winnipeg on 23 July 2007.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 31 July 2007.
Obituary [James Borland Douglas], Winnipeg Free Press, 17 April 2008.
Obituary [Irene May Douglas], Parksville Qualicum Beach News, 24 January 2012.
How it all began, Coffee News.
This page was prepared by Lois Braun.
Page revised: 5 September 2024
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